Customer Reviews

Where Have You Gone, Michelangelo: The Loss of Soul in Catholic Culture

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In this sequel to "Why Catholics Can't Sing", Mr. Day takes on the deplorable trends in church design and architecture seen in the last 30 years. Although his remarks are aimed at the Catholic Church, much of what he says is equally applicable to many Protestant denominations as well.

In a world where utilitarian seems to be the name of the game, it is good to see that there are still those who appreciate beauty and tradition in their worship, and understand 'why' churches, erected to the Glory of God, should look the part.

The angry tone Mr. Day displayed in his previous book is not to be found here, which is a wonderful improvement.

As a clergyman, I strongly recommend this book -- even though it may, at times, be an uncomfortable read.

In this follow-up, Day branches out from music criticism into the fields of church "renewal" and comparisons between the ole Latin Mass and the new vernacular Mass. It's not quite up to his other work. His writing style is a bit harder to follow and his points are more scattered. Sometimes he sounds like a union organizer for an organist guild. But it still is worth reading and he makes some extremely valid points. Everybody who is discontented with the state of Catholic worship should read this book and would probably agree with about 90% of it.

Acerbic. Provocative. Hilarious. These three words best describe the music professor's critique of church design, liturgy, music and American culture. This is an openly anecdotal book, not an academically researched one, however the insights are often quite prescient. As any good critic, he is an equal opportunity employer skewering ideas that are promoted by variously motivated factions within the Roman rite of the Catholic Church.

His wit is hilarious, perhaps at times even derailing the seriousness of his endeavour. My favorite quote among many is the following (pg. 111) in reference to the centralization of where the priest sits during the mass, formerly on the side of the altar, now often in front of the tabernacle, the old high altar or the most prominent site in the sanctuary:

"At the very center (the heart?) of so many newer or renovated liturgical environments--especially those stark, science-fiction architectural spaces--is the Royal Seat, sometimes the most formidable artistic "statement" in the whole church. (In a few cases that I have seen, one can almost imagine Ming the Merciless slouching on his throne and commanding, "Bring Flash Gordon to me!")"